The sex scandals - and missing penises! - hidden in Reading's own Bayeux Tapestry
A section of Britain’s Bayeux Tapestry, which is housed in Reading Museum. It is a replica of the world-famous medieval artwork, which tells the story of the Norman conquest of Britain and the Battle of Hastings in 1066.
Reading Museum is home to an extraordinary artwork you shouldn’t ignore
Reading Museum is home to one of the world's finest full-size replicas of the Bayeux Tapestry. Woven into its scenes of Norman conquest are tales of power, betrayal, propaganda, sex scandals and surprising details that most visitors never notice.
(This is an edited extract from a story originally published by The Reading Reporter. The full version is available on Substack.)
The impending loan of the original Bayeux Tapestry by France to Britain is exciting the worlds of art and history, and the buzz is spreading to Reading.
It was probably made in England over 900 years ago. At 70 metres long (and 50cm tall), the tapestry tells the story of the Norman conquest of England. Stitch by stitch and in vivid colour, the legends of William the Conqueror and King Harold Godwinson – yep, the one who got an arrow in his eye – are woven before us. It is world-famous medieval art and artefact, and Reading, remarkably, has its own full-size replica.
Every last detail of the original was painstakingly copied by a team of 35 Victorian embroiderers so that the people of Britain could enjoy the story too. Well, not every detail – there are 93 or 94 missing penises. That’s a legitimate academic debate, you know. But the Guardian calls Reading’s replica a “prudish triumph”!
Truth be told though: the tapestry replica has never interested me. Like every former child in Reading, I was forced to visit on a primary school trip. Nothing from that visit sticks in my memory, except a vague memory of boredom. I’m pretty sure the thing about the missing penises wasn’t mentioned back in the 90s. I’d surely have remembered that.
The tapestry trip ranked well below the undisputed champion of all school outings: the newly opened Tesco on Napier Road, where we pumped strawberry jam into doughnuts and ate our homework before the dog got the chance.
Two childish thoughts prevented me from going back to see the tapestry: who wants to see a replica, and why’s it even in Reading?
But that’s not unusual. London’s museums are full of visitors who don’t live there. When something sits on your doorstep it becomes strangely invisible, even world-class art.
With the world’s eyes back on Bayeux, however, I finally went to see it again, 30-plus years later.
Want to know Why one of the world’s most famous medieval artworks has a twin here?
Read the full story for free on Substack, where I reveal why people should stop ignoring Reading’s Bayeux Tapestry replica.
Read more: Spring flowers, sex scandals and missing penises – just another afternoon in Reading
The Reading Reporter publishes exclusive reporting, investigations and untold stories about this town every week. It is the only place for original, quality, independent journalism in Reading.
It’s where you get to see Reading differently.
Join free or become a paid subscriber today so you don’t miss out.
See you there,
Chris (The Reading Reporter)